49ers-Giants shaping up to be a classic

As a Hall of Fame defensive lineman who pays close attention to the NFL’s top pass rushers, Sunday’s showdown between the 49ers and visiting Giants is kid-in-a-candy-store stuff for Howie Long.

For starters, the 49ers boast a bull-rushing force in Justin Smith, whom Long terms the “John Wayne of defensive tackles” and likens to a blunt instrument for his ability to, in effect, make opposing linemen cry uncle late in games.

“He’s fun to watch, Long said. “He’s so physical. He just beats people up.”

Smith is so powerful that he’s capable of creating a disruption before kickoff.

Giants offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride claimed this week that Smith “gets away with murder” by holding linemen on stunts, a phrase that inspired Jim Harbaugh to return fire Friday with a statement that included the words “outrageous, “irrational,” “absurd” and “incendiary.”

Given that backdrop, plenty of eyes will be on Smith, but he’ll be joined by a plethora of must-watch pass rushers Sunday.

Smith’s devastating stunts are run in tandem with outside linebacker Aldon Smith, 23, who with 1.5 sacks Sunday can match Reggie White with 20 in his first 22 career games, the fastest pace in NFL history.

Meanwhile, the Giants feature their own precocious pass rusher in defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul, who had 16.5 sacks last year at age 22. Pierre-Paul is part of a defensive front that includes two-time Pro Bowl players in Justin Tuck and Osi Umenyiora, the latter of whom is tied for second in NFL history with six sacks in a game.

Of the aforementioned quintet of pass rushers, four have earned first-team All-Pro honors during their careers, and Aldon Smith, the lone non-All-Pro, ranked second among rookies in NFL history in 2011 with 14 sacks.

No wonder Long, 52, wishes he could suit up instead of just tuning in Sunday.

“It’s one of those games that as a former player you kind of wish you had 20 snaps in you,” Long said.

Long’s appetite for Sunday’s meeting was whetted by the Giants’ 20-17 overtime win over the 49ers in last season’s NFC title game, which the former Raiders standout attended in his role as an analyst on the Fox NFL Sunday pregame show.

Among his most enduring memories was the strength-against-strength battle between San Francisco’s withering pass rush and Eli Manning. The Giants quarterback completed 32 passes for 316 yards while being treated like a pinata. The 49ers registered six sacks – 2.5 by defensive tackle Ray McDonald – and hit Manning on 12 occasions.

This past week, 49ers safety Dashon Goldson and inside linebacker Patrick Willis, Manning’s teammate for a season at Mississippi, spoke admiringly of the quarterback’s ability to keep scraping himself off the turf in January.

“If anyone had any question about how tough Eli Manning was, he took a Thrilla-in-Manila beating in last year’s NFC Championship Game and kept getting up and kept coming,” Long said. “… There are a couple shots of Eli getting up in that game where he looked like he’d been through the meat grinder. You know helmet sideways, mud all over him. It’s that classic NFL Films stuff – you can just hear John Facenda doing the voiceover.”

New York’s pass rush was similarly punishing last year en route to its championship. The Giants had 11 sacks in their four-game postseason run and had eight hits on New England’s Tom Brady in the Super Bowl.

Seven months later, however, New York arrives Sunday with far different numbers despite boasting the same stars. The Giants rank 23rd in yards allowed per game and their ineffectiveness has been pinned on their lack of ferocity up front.

New York has registered eight sacks, ranking 25th in the league, and Tuck, Umenyiora and Pierre-Paul have combined for 3.5 sacks in five games. They registered seven takedowns in the 2011 postseason.

Long suggested the issue is intensity rather than ability.

“To me it comes down to how much do you want it?” Long said. “And all the things that come with winning a Super Bowl, and people are gunning for you week in and week out. The point of emphasis when you’re playing the Giants is their defensive front. If you can stop their defensive front, chances are you can have success.

“Heavy lies the head that wears the crown, and the crown definitely lies on their defensive front. They’re talented enough to be dominant every week, but for whatever reason, they haven’t been.”

The 49ers, it should be noted, have just nine sacks, but defensive coordinator Vic Fangio isn’t fretting over a unit that leads the NFL in points allowed (13.6) and ranks second in yards (262.6). San Francisco has allowed three points in its past two games.

At times, the 49ers’ pressure has created turnovers instead of sacks.

In last week’s 45-3 win against the Bills, for example, Buffalo quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick floated an interception to cornerback Chris Culliver after being belted by outside linebacker Ahmad Brooks.

“I haven’t felt during any of the games like, ‘Damn, where’s our pass rush,’ ” Fangio said. “And until I feel that, then we don’t have a problem.”

As for the Giants, it’s possible that Sunday’s highly anticipated meeting could awaken their defensive front from its early season slumber.

Long is eager to see if their star-studded pass rush can match the intensity of an opponent eager to avenge a crushing loss.

“If you think the Giants are getting everybody’s best game after winning the Super Bowl, do you think they’ll get the 49ers’ best game?” Long said. “I’m pretty sure they will.”

Giants (3-2) at 49ers (4-1)

1:25 p.m., Channel: 2 Channel: 40 / 810, 107.7

Spotlight on: TE Vernon Davis. Davis slipped behind the Giants’ secondary for touchdown receptions of 73 and 28 yards in last season’s NFC Championship Game, and he’ll match up against a unit missing starting safety Kenny Phillips (knee). In Phillips’ place, Stevie Brown will make his third career start after allowing a 62-yard touchdown to Browns rookie WR Josh Gordon in his first start of the season last week. Brown, a seventh-round pick of the Raiders in 2010, has been waived four times in his three-year career. Including the playoffs, Davis has four 100-yard performances in his past eight games. He posted six 100-yard games in his first 87 career contests.

Injury notes: 49ers – RB Brandon Jacobs (knee) is listed as questionable and sounded resigned last week to staying on the sideline in a matchup against his former team. QB Alex Smith is probable with a sprained middle finger on his throwing hand. Smith’s injured digit hasn’t noticeably affected him during practices. Giants – WR Hakeem Nicks (foot, knee) is questionable, but after practicing Friday was optimistic about his chances of playing. Nicks hasn’t played since a 10-catch, 199-yard performance in Week 2. RT David Diehl (knee) is questionable after missing the past three games.

Big 3

— Giants WR Victor Cruz is tied for second in the NFL in targets (55), but his catch percentage (67.3) ranks 29th, according to Pro Football Focus. Cruz would rank much higher in the latter category if not for his six drops, which are tied for the most in the league. Expect the 49ers to provide help for cornerback Carlos Rogers, who will cover Cruz in the slot.

— The Giants have gained 1,877 yards over their past four games, the highest total over any four-game span in team history. New York also has two 500-yard performances this season, the first time it has done so since 1967.

— Led by RB Ahmad Bradshaw’s 200 yards, the Giants had their most rushing yards (243) since 2008 in a win over the Browns last week. The 49ers haven’t allowed a rushing TD at home in 12 games and haven’t surrendered a 100-yard game in their past 22 games, the longest streaks in the NFL.